NH Chapter 22
Hero - Chapter 22 The rattling sound of wooden wheels The clattering of horse hooves on dirt. The two men standing outside the gate had long since noticed the approaching carriage near fifteen minutes prior. Having already sent for the city’s dignitaries to assemble at the Lord’s Manor. Normally there would never be something to actually warrant the assembly of so many important persons. Not even if a Prince or Princess should arrive would even half of these prominent figures be gathered. The reason why it was so necessary, was because the figure arriving was none other than the single greatest man of the current age of the Kingdom of Kremor. The founder of Cities, the Lord of the People, Lord Isaac Kaylock was about to arrive. The carriage was clearly displaying the Kaylock crest proudly on the front and both sides of the carriage as no less than fifty knights both followed and led the carriage. The Royal Blue heraldry flowed majestically in the wind, proudly held by the knights who carried them near the front. The carriage had yet to even arrive and already a crowd was gathering. For the people of Ren, the man known as Isaac was a figure of devotion. His every footstep thundered across the land, his every word served to further prosperity unto the world. They gathered to try to catch even the slightest glimpse of that man, that being. One thousand meters, they watched in anticipation One hundred meters, they continued to watch One hundred feet, they began to hold their very breaths as the convoy continued to approach ever closer The lead knight carrying one of the banners of Kaylock is outpaced by another knight wearing a suit of silver armor adorned by the crest of Kaylock just twenty feet from the gate. By then a gathering of more than several hundred people already filled the streets. As the new lead knight rides ahead, he makes a single motion with his hand. They gaze upon the man, the crest that adorns his body. The crowd of hundreds part like water within seconds, the convoy travels through without slowing even slightly. No citizen of Kremor would ever block this convoy’s path, not ever. The convoy enters through the gates. The crowd begins to disperse. The sounds of youthful excitement and even the occasional swoon of a woman can be heard. The guards gathered at the gate had grown to number nearly half of the entire southern guard, some with or without orders or express permission to be present. Sighs of relief could distinctly be heard from them. At one time, Lord Isaac would actually travel alone via horseback as it was much faster to do so, now he comes and goes with no less than a hundred well suited escorts. This would be due to the masses that could actually gather at a moment’s notice should Isaac’s arrival be known ahead of time. After an event when Isaac was roughly fifty two years of age, he was rather tired and had decided to send for a carriage from Ren while resting at a nearby village. Upon his arrival at Ren, he found himself surrounded by no less than twenty thousand citizens of Ren, all trying to catch a glimpse of the Lord of the Kaylock house. It was the first and last time Isaac Kaylock was ever late to an appointment, and as such, he made sure to avoid such incidents in the future. Never again would he move without escort, never again would he be late. As the convoy went, the streets made way. The sight of men and women gathering animals or children out of the path occurred often as they approached the city’s center. The location of the Lord’s Manor. To get to the manor from the south entrance takes no less than twenty minutes normally by horseback, this convoy, however, made it in less than ten. The streets were clear and the convoy moved without the slightest of obstruction. The sound of wooden wheels on dirt turned to wood on stone. The carriage shook less and the buildings grew both greater in size and in elegance. The Inner Ring, the location of many merchant enclaves, the Mercantile Plaza, and the City of Ren’s own branch of the Stewardship University sponsored by Lord Isaac Kaylock himself. Each house supported the various attendants of the merchants, as well as serving as housing for the thousands of students who flocked here every year for the chance of education. If one can succeed here, there is even a chance to attain a lower nobility rank, something the peasantry had never had the chance, nor dream to attain before. Beyond the Inner Ring was the City Center. A place of stone buildings nearly three stories tall, built of glorious white stone. The roads were so smooth that those riding the carriage could barely feel the shaking of the carriage anymore. The convoy finally came up to a massive building. The City Lord’s Manor, home to every manner of business the city of Ren hosts. From the numerous heads of the various merchant associations to the headmaster of the Central Stewardship Council, numerous important figures resided here. Amongst the three King Cities, Ren was by far the smallest. Yet, as it is both the closest to the Royal Capital, and the most frequented city by Lord Isaac, Dozens of the most important figures of the Kremor Kingdom set their residence within the King City of ren. With a Population of two hundred and three thousand, Ren barely has half the population of the other two King Cities, though this is largely due to it being the oldest of the three. The other two were built to be much larger as the walls of Ren limit the populace. The walls of the other two cities was only carried out within the last decade. Nearly a fifth of the Kremor Kingdom’s entire population resides within the three King Cities. Over the decades, these marvels of the world continue to show off the true luster of Kremor, a symbol of prosperity itself. No one has ever forgotten the sole man responsible for the foundation of each of these cities, which is why fifteen men of various girth and stature stood with heads bowed as the convoy entered through the silver gates of the City Lord’s Manor and into the plaza. The knights broke formation to allow the carriage to further approach the Manor. A large crystal fountain provided a watering hole for the horses. Though a system of pumps, the knights could pull water from an underground source and fill the pool with water. The silver gates that led to the plaza closed shortly after the last knight entered, preventing onlookers from following after them. A noble in dark purple with a heraldry belonging to the house of Kaylock rushed over to open the carriage door. A man steps out. His face clean shaven, showing the signs of great age, as his long white hair flows within the light breeze, a true figure of pure majesty. A dark blue cloak rests over his moderately large figure as he descends from the carriage. He turns back towards the door of the carriage and offers his hand to a woman stepping out behind him. *!!!* First Princess Sophia! The Crown Princess was accompanying Lord Isaac! The men passed glances towards one another. They certainly were not prepared for her to be accompanying Isaac. News had yet to spread outside of the capital, thus, to them, Sophia was still very much the heir apparent to the Kremor throne. Upon her shoulders was a lavender cloak that complimented her dress well. Every movement furthered her sense of Royal majesty. If not for her colorful demeanor, she would certainly be the perfect person to inherit the throne from the underwhelming King Gideon. Just as the men expected the two to approach, the old Lord Isaac held his hand out once again. What's more, the Princess actually stood to the other side as if waiting to walk with another person just as important. Is the King himself with them? No, impossible, King Gideon has never left the Royal Demesne in his nearly fifty years as King…. What took these men by surprise was the identity of the other passenger. Another woman. But… perhaps even more majestic than the Princess! Certainly at the very least, she radiated beauty, her glistening brown hair shone in the sunlight as it swayed softly in the breeze. Her silver dress glistened as she placed her own cloak back into the carriage. Of course, they could never say such things out loud. The youth who had opened the carriage had received a parchment from the lead knight and quickly ran to stand before the present figures. (Samson Kaylock) “Presenting the Lord head of the High Kaylock house, Lord Isaac Kaylock. Presenting her Royal Highness, First Princess Sophia…~~~ The present men looked with attentiveness, just who was this second woman… ~~~Presenting the … Lady Head of the High Argat house, Duchess…. Silver Argat.” Duchess!? A Duchess and a High Noble house’s head? What a rarity for two High Noble heads to be together in one place outside of the Royal Palace. But why haven’t they ever heard of this house before? Perhaps she is to replace the late Reice Amalren, first and last head of the High Amalren house. Will she take over as the Lord governor? … Lady governor? But… no, the herald had clearly stated that this woman was only a Duchess, not a Lady. If she was intended to reside over a King City, one must be the highest rank of Nobility without exception. The fact remains, however, that she was someone of note capable of accompanying both the First Princess and Lord Isaac himself, her position must be of a similar level for certain. (Baron Weise) “The regent of Ren, Weise Jarmagne, greets his Lordship, her Majesty, madam Duchess. Might this gathering of lower men inquire as to the intent behind the blessing of a visit by his Lordship?” Lord Isaac clasped his hands together behind his back under his cloak, his very being pouring out an intense pressure that made the Baron break out in a light sweat. (Lord Isaac) “Now now, even after twenty years, you all still behave so humbly around this simple old man. I’m paying a visit to handle some accounts while aiding this young one here in establishing and settling her demesne granted by the King himself. I plan to make a large investment.” The gathered men all showed their various signs of surprise. Surely enough, as King Gideon rarely appointed anyone to status, or even so much as make a declaration. For this woman to have gained the King’s attention, she could never be underestimated. Not that the gathered men could have dared to do so in the first place given her traveling companions. Wait… did the Lord Isaac Kaylock just say… Large investment…? The man who makes more in a few weeks than the Royal Family does in a year… just said large investment… What does that even mean?! At this, an older man steps forward. (Councilor Jeramius) “L…. Lord Kaylock… Have you established the quantity you wish to have set aside for this present venture?” Jeramius was the head of the nearly two hundred stewards in charge of holding and organizing Lord Isaac’s numerous accounts. He had served by Lord Isaac’s side for nearly thirty-five years. He held his hands behind his back, his hands shaking. The cause would be because whenever this man, the Lord of Kaylock spoke in terms of ‘Large’ or even ‘Big’, things become rather obscene rapidly. (Lord Isaac) “Hmmm, it might take some gathering…” … *!!!* G… gathering he says!? (Lord Isaac) “Jeramius, establish an account of twenty Palrus if you will.” … There were no words from these men. The Palrus was a new tier of currency only recently established due to the ever rising prosperity of the Kremor Kingdom intended to be used in large scale currency transactions. Rather than a currency itself, the Palrus is a representative item that holds a stake of kren and officialized by Lord Isaac Kaylock’s treasury. The highest tier of Palrus is the equivalent of twenty thousand kren!!! Just ten Kren could buy a room within the Inner Ring of the King City. If used well, a person could feed a family of 5 for almost a decade with just twenty kren… Four hundred thousand kren… This is why these men can never NOT show the greatest extent of their humbled natures before this man… he’s just… just too frightening… To invest currency to this extent as if it were nothing.... they were almost fooled by his age… once again… Jeramius gulped as he felt his heart soar, it even took him a moment to collect his wits. (Councilor Jeramius) “D…. did you say twenty Palrus… Lord Kaylock…?” Lord Isaac walked up the steps and passed by the men before replying. The pause was nearly twenty seconds, but in that twenty seconds as Lord Isaac came and passed them by without so much as a murmur caused these great and proud men to break out into a deep sweat… (Lord Isaac) “Ah, yes yes. I trust you to manage Jeramius. Have the east wing divert funds from ‘That’ venture, there should be more than enough. Now then, I have business to see to, Gentlemen, if you would follow me, Weise, please see to the Princess and Duchess. I will be finding myself busy for a few days time, please utilize account three-thirty-one for any and all expenses during that time. Jeramius, log the access to Weise after we finish with the reports.” The men besides Weise sighed, several days without sleep once again… Lord Isaac’s bottomless font of vitality never fails… Even at his age he remains famed for his endless work ethic. (Baron Weise) “Of course my Lordship.” With a bow, Weise separates from the others who follow Lord Isaac inside. After seeing them in, the Baron turns to the two women he was charged with. When thinking of who these two women were, his heart simply sank… He surely was left with the harder task without a doubt… (Baron Weise) My humblest of greetings, my name is Weise Jarmagne, Baron of the Estates and current Regent Instanding of the King City of Ren. Please inform me of any needs either of you might require.” Without a single second of delay, the Duchess spoke. Weise believed her name was… Silver Argat… was it? No matter… “Yes, Baron, might we skip the formalities in haste as I seek the first manner of business. I fear that we will be encroaching into several days as is just to complete the many preparations at hand.” Baron weise was rather surprised, not only was her appearance simply beyond stunning, but even her voice and verbal tact only further developed her regal airs. With a light bow, (Baron Weise) “If that is what you wish.” “Yes, might you gather all slave traders or merchentry within a day’s distance from here? Please have them bring their full stock.” Chapter 22 - END White's Corner: So... tired... I'm going to bed now.... Don't you dare forget to comment for this... Blurg... more tomorrow... Stay Tuned~ Black's Corner: (Black) "Hey hey, Black here once again. Things are finally starting to kick off in the world of... well... on the Island Kingdom of Kremor! About time White, why don't you tell us more about the walls of the City, or perhaps the backstories of each of the 'figures' that went along with Lord Isaac.... Lol.... WAIT, WHITE, PLEASE, I... I WAS JUST JOKING!!! Black out~" ~White